Chapter 2

CHAPTER II

State of the Roman empire under Zeno--Theodoric king of the
Ostrogoths--Character of Theodoric--Changes in the Roman empire--
New languages--New names--Theodoric dies--Belisarius in Italy--
Totila takes Rome--Narses destroys the Goths--New form of
Government in Italy--Narses invites the Lombards into Italy--The
Lombards change the form of government.

At this time the ancient Roman empire was governed by the following
princes: Zeno, reigning in Constantinople, commanded the whole of the
eastern empire; the Ostrogoths ruled Mesia and Pannonia; the
Visigoths, Suavi, and Alans, held Gascony and Spain; the Vandals,
Africa; the Franks and Burgundians, France; and the Eruli and Turingi,
Italy. The kingdom of the Ostrogoths had descended to Theodoric,
nephew of Velamir, who, being on terms of friendship with Zeno the
eastern emperor, wrote to him that his Ostrogoths thought it an
injustice that they, being superior in valor to the people thereabout,
should be inferior to them in dominion, and that it was impossible for
him to restrain them within the limits of Pannonia. So, seeing himself
under the necessity of allowing them to take arms and go in search of
new abodes, he wished first to acquaint Zeno with it, in order that he
might provide for them, by granting some country in which they might
establish themselves, by his good favor with greater propriety and
convenience. Zeno, partly from fear and partly from a desire to drive
Odoacer out of Italy, gave Theodoric permission to lead his people
against him, and take possession of the country. Leaving his friends
the Zepidi in Pannonia, Theodoric marched into Italy, slew Odoacer and
his son, and, moved by the same reasons which had induced Valentinian
to do so, established his court at Ravenna, and like Odoacer took the
title of king of Italy.

Theodoric possessed great talents both for war and peace; in the
former he was always conqueror, and in the latter he conferred very
great benefits upon the cities and people under him. He distributed
the Ostrogoths over the country, each district under its leader, that
he might more conveniently command them in war, and govern them in
peace. He enlarged Ravenna, restored Rome, and, with the exception of
military discipline, conferred upon the Romans every honor. He kept
within their proper bounds, wholly by the influence of his character,
all the barbarian kings who occupied the empire; he built towns and
fortresses between the point of the Adriatic and the Alps, in order,
with the greater facility, to impede the passage of any new hordes of
barbarians who might design to assail Italy; and if, toward the latter
end of his life, so many virtues had not been sullied by acts of
cruelty, caused